Essentially thinking about moving without actually moving. Imagined movements can actually be hard work if you are in pain. This is most likely because 25 percent of the neurones in your brain are 'mirror neurones' and start firing when you think of moving or even watch someone else move.

By imagining movements, you use similar brain areas as you would when you actually move. This is why sports people imagine an activity before they do it. More info & training tips

If you put your left hand behind a mirror and right hand in front, you can trick your brain into believing that the reflection of your right hand in the mirror is your left. You are now exercising your left hand in the brain, particularly if you start to move your right hand. Sounds tricky!

The three stages of G.M.I

We now know that your brain is adaptable and changeable throughout your entire life and by exercising your brain in measured and monitored steps, which increase as progress is made, GMI can treat difficult and ongoing pain problems.

The three different treatment techniques include left/right discrimination training, explicit motor imagery exercises and mirror therapy. These techniques are delivered sequentially but require a flexible approach from the patient and clinician to move forwards, backwards and sideways in the treatment process to suit the individual.

Interested in taking a course?

We also offer a Graded Motor Imagery course for clincians. If you are a clinician or you would like to talk to your clinician about our course view the course trailer here and check out our G.M.I courses.

The Graded Motor Imagery Handbook

We recommend that anybody with a chronic pain state learns more about the GMI process and talks to their clinician about options to include brain training exercises as part of a comprehensive rehabilitation programme.

The latest step in the Explain Pain Revolution from the authors who really started the revolution over a decade ago with the original and best selling book Explain Pain.

Contact

Neuro Orthopaedic Institute (NOI) Australasia has been in operation for over 20 years, with highly qualified instructors working on all continents with multidisciplinary audiences. Organising over 100 seminars a year throughout the world, NOI’s faculty members are active in many conferences, university programmes and other postgraduate education sessions. The company reinvests in education and clinically based research and Noigroup Publications has grown from the demand for resources to support this emerging research.

Many problems such as chronic pain and stress are still ‘off the radar’ in terms of health professional, business and government understanding. NOI is actively engaged in these challenges on a daily basis. Find out more...